


Eligens

by beatnik (foghoorn)



Category: Actor RPF, American (US) Actor RPF, British Actor RPF
Genre: F/F, F/M, a lot will happen, fantasy world with real actors, i don't hate any of these actors or actresses they're just there, lots of plot twists later on sorry fam
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-26
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-17 22:28:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18973807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foghoorn/pseuds/beatnik
Summary: [ON HOLD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE]Aria Mercia never anticipated being chosen for the Eligens. When the letter came through the door, and she was taken off to participate, everything changed. Does she really want to be here, and have her parents take pride in her or does she just want to be free of responsibility? The Eligens is hard, long, and demanding, and sometimes it's the unexpected people who will shine through in times of great struggle.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! So this is an original story I'm writing at the moment which was non-fandom but I've now turned it into a bit of an actor RPF. I hope you enjoy it, make sure to leave kudos!

The desk was stacked with perfectly handwritten letters, all in the same forest green envelope with a golden wax seal. It was nearly finished, one more letter, before it could start. She put her pen to paper, and wrote.

_Dear Aria Mercia,_

_You are receiving this letter because you've been chosen to participate in the next_ _Eligens_ _to battle out for the place on the_ _Auresilio_ _, and to prove you are worthy to take a place in the_ _Regidi_ _family. Enclosed is a list of equipment to bring, a_ _hovercar_ _will be sent to pick you up promptly at noon on the 13th of February._

_Good luck._

_Queen Celia Claudio of_ _Auresilya_

She skilfully slipped the paper into the envelope and poured the wax seal onto it, stamping it with her crest. She smiled as she opened the hatch for them to be sent off.

 


	2. A Beginning

Aria Mercia wasn't happy. It had started raining whilst she was bringing the groceries back, and the paper bags had been soaked. The half hour trek to the cyber-mart from the village was not worth it, the stocks were low and the food was reducing in size for its price. The food points would eventually bring absolutely nothing home for her and her parents. A lashing of cold rain was just what she needed to absolutely ruin her day even more. After just a few minutes walking along the slowly dampening road back to the village, the bags were already falling apart in her fingers. There was no use in trying to carry all of the items without them, so she sat herself under a small tree, sighing heavily. The roads were very empty, everyone was anticipating the official announcement of the candidates for this year's Eligens, and Aria wasn't one of those residents who wanted to follow what the Auresilio were doing, nor wanted to be selected for the Eligens. On the contrary, her parents were adamant that she would get through one day. Her wit and endurance made a perfect candidate, but her unprivileged background put most people off of selecting someone like her.

Aria Mercia was still not content with the situation. The rain had stopped, but there was still no way of her making it home with all of the groceries.  _I guess I'll just take the most important things,_  she thought to herself, picking up the large sack of protein sachets and stuffing the sugar in her pockets. Whilst shoving the last few possible items into her pockets, she heard a hovercar approach her. 

"Can I help you with that?"

Aria turned around, seeing a young, well dressed man sticking his head out of the hovercar. 

"I'm- fine-" she grumbled, just as half the items fell out of her pockets. She heard the car land, and the car door open, and the man came over, picking up the items.

"You should really invest in a bag." He chuckled.

"No shit, I had one, but the rain made it disappear." Aria said.

"I can give you a lift to wherever you're bringing that, I'm in no rush, you're welcome to get in."

"I'm. Fine." Aria stumbled on her way, dropping items as she walked. 

"You're coming with me, you're never going to get back at this rate, and you're shivering."

Aria hadn't realised that her whole body was shaking after the rain had gone and the cold air had ripped through the trees again. He grabbed the last few items, put them in the boot, and offered a hand to help Aria into the hovercar.

"Thanks, thanks a lot."

~

The car journey was silent other than Aria telling the driver where she wanted to get to, her home. The man smiled at her, but saw the disgruntled expression in her face and decided to stay silent. The car slid in front of Aria's house, and she opened the door quickly. As she rushed to get her stuff out of the boot, the man came over.

"I didn't catch your name yet."

"Aria. Aria Mercia. And I'd ask the same of you."

"It's Thomas. You shouldn't need to know any more, you'll find out eventually. Enjoy your food."

"Thanks."

As the car hovered away again, Aria's parents stood at the door, a mixture of surprise and excitement on their faces. 

"Did you know who that was, Ari?" Her mother exclaimed.

"No?"

"That, that was Thomas Hiddleston. He's the top candidate for the Eligens this year, and he was just chosen for this year's too. On that note, you'd better come inside too, we need to speak to you."

Aria had a sick feeling in her stomach. Her parents would not sit her down and talk to her a lot, so it's important. Was she chosen for the Eligens? Wouldn't her parents tell her straightaway if she was? She quickly went through the front door and shut it briskly behind her. Her parents were already sat at the table, an envelope in front of them. Aria hesitantly sat down.

"So, we may have opened it before you were here, but a lovely messenger came whilst we were watching the selection on the holoscreen, and we couldn't resist." Aria's father rambled. "Go on, open it then."

Aria slowly peeled the golden envelope off of the card and opened it. The first line already revealed the situation.

"I- I can't do this."

Aria's father scowled. 

"It's your destiny, you know that you need to do it. You'll make our family proud."

"It's not what I want my life to be like."

"The Auresilio is the place for you I've you've been chosen as the unrevealed candidate. They don't choose anyone." Aria's mother stated.

"You need to go. I will not let this chance pass. Aria Electra Mercia, you will be going. No no's. I will be expecting you up early tomorrow so we can make sure you are presentable to travel there."

Aria let out a quiet sob and dropped the letter back onto the table, walking towards her room.

Why her?

She was normal, unprivileged, and not the material for the new member.

It won't be her.

 


	3. The Journey

The day where Aria left for the Eligens came too fast, and many sleepless nights contemplating the significance of the actual event to her lead her to still have absolutely no interest in trying her best. Her parents had pressured her into getting all new equipment for the Eligens, even though they were saving the money to restore the home (it had been falling apart for a long time). Noon was approaching fast, and Aria didn't have the nerve to sleep in whilst her parents were waiting anxiously downstairs. 

The equipment list in itself was a strange thing, with items such as a set of newly smelted daggers and a bag of local herbs proving the extremity of the items. Aria's mother was adamant that she wore her best casual clothes for the opening night of the event, so her new suede trousers and finely woven linen shirt were already laid out on her bed. It wasn't impressive in any sense in comparison to the wealthy selected of this year's Eligens, but it was better than anything she would usually wear, hand-me-downs were the convention. The effort her parents had put into providing the best equipment they could afford, asking what she'd like too, made her actually think they cared about her and not just about the status boost that came with the competition. The way they talked about it, she was sure they didn't.

There was a loud knock at the door, and Aria's father quickly rushed to open it, greeted by an Auresilya official.

"We won't be long, Aria will be coming right now." He said quickly.

Aria sighed, and picked up her bags. She didn't want to do this, but she had no choice. Her family needed the money, and she apparently needed the change.

"Coming!" She shouted before she dragged her bags down the stairs, sighing.

Her parents were waiting at the door, the Auresilya official standing by the car.

"Quickly, we don't want to keep the Queen waiting." Her mother hugged her tightly, and pressed a locket into her hand. "This was mine, and I want it to be yours now. Make us proud."

Aria smiled and left the house, looking back at her parents, both with tears in their eyes. The bags were swiftly put in the back of the car, and she was placed behind the chauffeur. The hovercar was shiny, new, nothing that her family could afford. The seats were leather and the windows tinted so dark that the only source of light was from the front windscreen. It was a sign of wealth, just like the whole of the Auresilio. It made her wonder why she was selected to be the secret participant, a poor person with not the best skills (according to her). The car pulled out of the road and zoomed towards the palace.

 

~

 

The journey took them through a beautiful forest, lush evergreens and stony creeks adorning the earth. It was a change from the wrecked forests of Aria's area, and as it was the old dumping grounds for faulty goods, the trees hadn't recovered since the total fall of manual industry. Aria stared out of the window, mesmerised by the landscape surrounding the palace. She suddenly saw a flash of silver in the treeline, hoping it was the palace, but the car came to a sudden stop. The chauffeur started whispering to the official.

"I told you we shouldn't have taken the shortcut. There's a gang of bandits around here." He whispered, hands gripped tightly on the emergency wheel.

"They paid me to... Let's get out of here before this escalates more..."

Before they could move, a loud gunshot sounded and the doors were forcibly opened to pull them out, Aria included. She struggled in the strong grip of the men. They dragged her towards their hovervan and motioned for the royal workers to leave.

"Why me?" She cried out. "Help!"

The man carrying her slapped her across the face and slammed her body into the back of the van, before jumping in behind her and tying her up. He shoved a gag in Aria's mouth quickly.

"The less you move, the less it will hurt, girlie." He sneered, slamming the van door shut. Aria cried a muffled sob as the hovervan glided away into the forest, and she was unbeknownst of where she was going, and what would happen.

After what felt like an hour of driving, Aria heard the front doors slam shut as someone got out, and the back door open to get her out. The same man picked her up and carried her through a doorway concealed in the rock face they were parked next to, revealing a long, carved corridor. The lights were dim and flickery, a sign that the tunnel was not used often. At the end of a corridor, a reinforced iron door, with a small window at eye level to look inside. The man opened the door, placed Aria down, and shut it briskly. She pulled the gag out of her mouth and coughed, brushing the dust off of her. Little did she know, this was only the beginning of a long, long day.

"Aria Electra Mercia, welcome."


	4. Settling

"What do you want from me? And why me?"

The woman grinned, sitting down in the chair across from Aria.

"Welcome to the first stage of the Eligens. If you think this is stressful, wait for the other stages. You'll never last, Aria. You're weak."

Aria wanted to take it to heart, but knew better than to believe what others think of her. If this was really the first stage, they'd be using intimidation tactics, so this was all a lie.

"I'm not, woman." Aria stated back. "I know what you're doing, and it's not working."

The woman pulled out a tablet and typed something into it.

"I'm Verena, call me that from now on," she said, placing the tablet on the desk, "And you've already realised the first tactic, so well done to you. It doesn't stop here though, we'll pick you apart until everything's uncovered. We need to know who and what we're working with. Okay, starting easy. Name, date of birth, address."

"Aria Electra Mercia. 23rd July 2346. 78 Quentine Drive-" Aria paused. "Why do you need this? You know where I live, what my routine is, you've all been watching me for a while."

"Just checking, be patient. Your greatest strength?"

Aria thought for a moment, before answering with, "I'm pretty humble as I haven't grown up with a lot, so I'm not good with questions like these. I'd say my greatest strength is not being dependent on anything, being able to sustain myself alone. I've learnt to never take things for granted and always make the best of everything."

"Good, good. Your greatest weakness?"

"Too much compassion. Though I might not be dependent on anything I can't stand to see anyone in pain. The hardest thing is to see how my parents are struggling to financially sustain us."

"You won't have a problem with money if you end up in the Auresilio, they're the wealthiest group in the Lands."

"They have no sympathy for the people dying in situations like mine, they don't see the pain everyone in the Outer Lands is going through."

"We're not here to talk about the state of the Lands, we're here for you, Aria."

"Where I come from is a part of me."

"Tell me, what's motivated you to participate? It seems you are trying, there is effort being put in, why?"

"I was forced into this by your stupid queen. My family is dying from poverty, they need the money. It's always lose/lose for me."

Verena typed something into her tablet again.

"Thank you for coming to this interview, you've been approved to go through to the next rounds, though I don't know why, with that demeanour."

A guard opened the door, and directed Aria to leave the room. 

"The guard will take you to your quarters within the palace, and you will get notified in the morning of the next task. Expect your items to be sent to your room."

 

~

 

Aria followed the guard, who was walking quickly further along the corridor. A wooden door slid open, and the hallways of the palace were revealed. Golden, ornate furniture and decoration adorned the halls, velvet green curtains draped from every tall window. Green and gold were the colours of Auresilya, green for the forests, gold for the wealth. Aria stumbled behind the guard, who was still moving quickly. He turned left, and pushed a gold door open to reveal a smaller corridor, lined with twelve doors. Each door had a plaque with a different candidate's name on it. The guard walked to the end of the corridor, and turned to Aria. He pulled a band out of his pocket, and handed it to her.

"This is your pass to get into your room, and wherever has been cleared for you to go. The only people who have access to it are you, the maids, and Queen Celia. Don't expect any candidate to come waltzing into your room, it's one of the only spaces of privacy for you."

He turned and left, and Aria scanned her band before fastening it around her wrist. The door slid open, and revealed her living quarters. The room was probably the size of her whole bottom floor in her home. To her right, a floor-to-ceiling window spanning the whole distance of the wall, with views of the lush forests surrounding the palace. The bed could probably fit a small family in it, an emperor sized bed with golden sheets and beautiful green curtains closing it off. To her left, the wall had a door, already open, in it, revealing a wardrobe, filled to the brim with extra items, and her personal items already stacked on the corresponding shelves. Another door lead to  a pristine white bathroom, another floor-to-ceiling window offering views of the grounds. The bath was a majestic white tub sitting in the middle of the room, the bath surprisingly already filled, rose petals floating on the surface. Aria breathed in the fresh scent of sandalwood and rose, and turned towards her bedroom again. The HyperScreen was flashing a message:

"Queen Celia expects all the candidates to be ready for the inaugural Eligens Ball this evening, your baths have already been drawn and maids will be coming to help you prepare. A guard will be sent to collect each of you separately from your rooms for this evening's entertainment."

Aria headed back into the bathroom, getting ready for her bath.


	5. An Introduction to All

The bath was the perfect temperature as she dipped a toe in, climbing in and settling in the tub. The water refreshed her skin instantly, and she picked up the soap bar next to the bath to scrub herself down. She hadn't had a bath like this in a while, the closest she got to one was swimming in the lake weekly. It was nice to know that the Auresilio took care of their candidates, after this morning's interview she wasn't sure how everything was going to unfold. She heard a knock at the door, and a young woman said "We're your maids, we're here to help you get ready" and Aria let them in. They were all very similar to the girls in her area, people like her. They smiled with such beautiful smiles, and she wondered if they really did enjoy their jobs.

"We've heard a lot about you, miss, you're the first Outer Lands candidate in over half a century. I'm Ruth," the girl with the dirty brown hair said, "and this is Michaela." She motioned towards the shorter girl, with raven black hair.

"Thanks for coming to help, I've never done this before. And you really don't need to call me miss, just call me Aria." Aria said, getting out of the bath as Michaela held out a towel for her.

"That's alright, we are here to help after all. Come, we need to get you into your dress, it's a stunner isn't it?" Ruth answered, opening the bathroom door to go towards the closet.

"What dress? I never bought a dress." Aria asks.

"Ah, well it's tradition for the Auresilio to buy the candidates their Eligens Ball outfits, which also shows how much they like you, depending on how good your outfit is. I believe they've taken a liking, or someone has, your whole wardrobe has been stocked up, not even just your first night's outfits." Michaela said, turning to hand Aria a pair of lace panties and a matching bra. After she put them on, they secured a thin corset around her waist.

"You have such a lovely figure, we don't need to put you in so many layers and corsets." Ruth said, tying the corset shut. She then motioned for Aria to stand on the pedestal in the closet, whilst they pulled the dress over her figure. The dress was a beautiful shade of burgundy, layers of tulle under the skirt giving it volume. The neckline swooped deep.

"I might need to take my bra off for this dress." Aria said.

"Oh, yes, I forgot about that, give it to me, I'll put it back." Michaela answered.

Aria unclasped her bra and handed it back, pulling the straps back over her body. Michaela and Ruth tied the dress shut, and offered a hand for her to step down. 

"Ruth will do your hair, I'll be doing your makeup. First impressions are the most important, make sure you speak to everyone in the room, and don't let anyone's demeanour fool you at this stage. The wisest ones may be the ones who are the most hated." Michaela said, pulling out a chest of makeup from the closet shelves.

Ruth quickly started on Aria's chocolate brown hair, twisting it into an elaborate updo whilst Michaela quickly powdered different products on her face. She slipped her heels on as they finished her appearance. The final look was overwhelming for Aria. She had never worn things of such beauty, and she really did find herself beautiful at this moment. As she gazed into the mirror, Ruth slipped the locket her mother gave her around her neck.

"We'll be waiting for you here once you're finished, have a lovely time, milady."

"It's Aria! Really, don't bother, we'll be friends sooner or later. Hopefully sooner, thank you for doing this for me."

"It's our job, now run along, the guard has been waiting for a bit, he's probably getting impatient." Ruth smiled.

Aria walked out of the door, and followed the guard. All the other rooms had the "unoccupied" signs flashing outside their rooms, she was the last one to make her appearance. Aria felt a bit scared for that.

 

~

 

"Our last candidate, and our special candidate, please welcome Miss Aria Mercia from the Outer Lands!"

Aria walked through the doors that led to the staircase down to the ballroom, smiling brightly. The room was packed full of royal officials, the candidates were already waiting near the banquet table laid out to them. It was apparent the remainder of the candidates were wealthier than Aria, as they didn't find as much enjoyment in what they were wearing. Aria glided down the stairs, another guard waiting to escort her to her position at the table. She was lead to a seat close to the Queen herself, and as she gazed at the tables laden with golden cutlery, and everyone settling in their seats, she caught the eye of her. Queen Celia had a twinkle in her eye and she smiled at Aria, and nodded lightly. The bell suddenly rang.

"Please be seated, the food will be served in a moment. Take the time to make friends, enemies, acquaintances, make yourself familiar with the people in this room!" Celia exclaimed, and everyone quickly took their seats. Aria scanned the table, making a note of each candidate, what they looked like, and first impressions.

_Dakota Fanning, perfect looks, absolutely imperfect personality judging from her bad habits talking to people._

_Dylan O'Brien, seems like he's desperate to be the top of the male rank but really can't do it, sticking around all of the ladies_

_Sophie Turner, acts like she's the queen, her red hair is so tall it could topple over, avoid at all cost except if you want to be ridiculed._

_Eddie Redmayne, seems relatively normal, not very outgoing (he has his nose in a book), seems like the louder ones are trying to get him to open up but he doesn't want their crap._

_Elizabeth Olsen, strong accent, body language suggests she doesn't understand most people._

_Benedict Cumberbatch, polite but also the most lavishly dressed man in the room, seems to avoid the more questionable ladies._

_Scarlett Johansson, confident posture and talking, dirty blonde hair, clearly doesn't take status to heart (try and make friends?)._

_And finally, Thomas Hiddleston. Mixed feelings, good-hearted? Be aware._

Aria was engrossed in her thoughts as she felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to see Scarlett sitting next to her.

"I thought you'd have at least said something to someone by now, everyone is talking about you after all. I'm Scarlett, nice to meet you. You seem like one of the only decent people around here, everyone's so stuck up."

"Yeah, I'm getting that impression too. Have you spoken to any other candidates?" Aria asked.

"Only briefly with most of them, the only ones I had a conversation with were Benedict and Eddie, they both seem nice enough. Oh and Thomas, but everyone's swooning all over him, seems like he's the eye candy of the Eligens. How about you?"

"You're the first one, I think. Thanks for talking, I probably look so overwhelmed, I've never been at any event like this nor worn anything like this. The food smells so good too." Aria inhales deeply. "I'm gonna get overweight with this quality stuff."

Scarlett laughs and starts eating off her plate. Aria and Scarlett have good conversation through the meals, and after everyone has finished eating the tables are swiftly moved for the actual ball to begin. The problem, Aria can't dance.

 


	6. Dancing Chaos

As soon as the tables were cleared, everyone moved towards the dancefloor, most people already mingling with others and finding their partners. 

"Come on, I'll introduce you to Eddie and Benedict, and if they don't have partners yet that'll be us sorted for the first dance too!" Scarlett laughed and dragged Aria over to them.

"Boys, this is Aria. Aria meet Benedict," he waves, "and Eddie." Alexander smiles at her.

"Would you two lovely ladies like to have your first dance with us?" Benedict asked, offering his hand to Scarlett.

"Of course, shall we?"

Eddie moved towards Aria, clearly not a fan of social situations.

"So, uh, I guess that leaves us."

Aria smiled brightly and took his hand to move into the main dancefloor. As she moved towards it, she thought about how she'd have to tell him that she couldn't dance. She couldn't sit out, the candidates had to at least dance the first dance. As they positioned themselves, Aria opened her mouth to speak.

"So, there's a bit of a problem. I can't actually dance." Aria laughed at herself.

"Oh." Eddie said. "Okay, well, I guess just try? I can't say I'm a professional, I'm sorry."

The music started, and they started to move. Within the first few seconds Aria stumbled over her feet, and nearly fell into Dylan and Dakota, who just looked disgusted at her. After calming herself down mentally, she carried on, ignoring everyone else. Until she saw a shiny shoe in front of her feet, and the next moment she was laying on the ground, the layers of the gown billowing behind her. Everyone started laughing, and the music stopped. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Sophie whispering to someone, and laughing manically. The embarrassment hit her like a hovervan, and she rushed out of the ballroom faster than she'd ever moved in heels.

~

As soon as she got through the golden doors, she looked around to find her way to her room. Two lefts and a right? Or was it two rights and a left? She just walked briskly away from the ballroom, not running to avoid suspicion from the guards. After a few turns, she was completely lost. Alas, there was a staircase at the end of the corridor. One that clearly led to the roof of the palace. Aria managed to drag herself onto the terrace before she burst into tears, her dress quickly stained with them. She settled on the hard, concrete floor, using her layers of dress as a cushion, before looking out over the landscape.

"Why me? Why?" She sobbed, wiping the tears from her face, and pulling her knees to her torso.

"It seems there are people who have a vendetta against you this year, Aria."

She turned around to see Queen Celia standing behind her, dressed in her luminous golden robes. 

"My queen- what are you doing here?"

The queen walked towards her, crouching next to her.

"Don't tell anyone, but I come here when I need to think. In this case, I came to find you. I somehow had a feeling you'd end up here, not sure why." She held out a handkerchief for Aria to dry her eyes with.

"You didn't need to, I'm fine by myself."

"Girl, you don't know how much is going to happen in the next few weeks, why you were chosen, anything. You need someone to be there for you. I sent for someone to go find Thomas to console you. I've seen the way you look at him, it's-" the Queen paused, "-different."

Queen Celia stood up again and turned to leave.

"I'll let you two talk, call for me if anything else happens. I'm happy to help you, Aria." She opened the door, stepped through, and glided down the stairs again. Aria sat for a few minutes before she heard someone come through the door again.

“Aria!” Thomas rushed over and sat down.

“You don’t have to be here. I thought you’d be one of the people laughing at me, seeing as you’re one of the rich kids too.” Aria wiped away a tear.

Thomas put his hand on her shoulder, looking sympathetic.

“I wouldn’t do that, what they did was horrible, and I hope they never do it again. To be honest, I’m worried that this will persist through the Eligens. I hope they don’t target you, you really don’t deserve it. You’re a wonderful person, you really shouldn’t let others get you down.” Thomas assured her. He took his handkerchief and wiped the tears off her face, before handing it to her. “Keep the handkerchief, I don’t need it.”

Aria nodded in thanks and tried to gather herself together and pushed herself from the floor.

“It’s too cold down there, I need to get inside.”

“Why get inside when I can hug you?”

Aria wasn’t sure how to respond.  _Is he flirting with me?_ She shook off the thought and moved towards him and hugged him tightly. His embrace was warm, his suit was soft and velvety, and his grip was not too tight. Aria breathed in his scent, a sweet mixture of peach and rose. He loosened his grip and stepped back.

“Not that bad, was it?” He faced the slowly emerging sunset, and smiled. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” Aria replied. She felt him trying to lead them on, so responded quickly afterwards, “I need to get back. A girl needs her sleep.”

Thomas approached quickly and lunged towards her with a kiss. Aria backed away quickly.

“I thought you wanted me.” He stated.

“I don’t know if I want you. I’ve only known you for a few days.” Aria turned towards the door and quickly pushed it open.

“I’m sorry, Aria, I was getting signals, they clearly weren’t right.” Thomas tried to follow her.

“I need some time to think, sorry.”

Aria walked as quickly to the nearest guard to ask them for directions to her room as she rushed up here. It turns out the corridor was only a short walk away, and she made a mental note to come back to the rooftop more. After slamming her door shut, she turned towards her maids, already waiting in her room.

“A lot happened, I’ll tell you everything, but first, let me have another bath.”


	7. First Chaos in the Palace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aria talks out the night to her maids, before getting well-deserved rest. She is woken up suddenly in the night, rumours of an attack start surfacing.

"I didn't think the Queen would be speaking to candidates to fast." Michaela said.

"Or even actively seek out you." Ruth added.

Aria laughed in agreement. "I was just as surprised as you two are now, trust me."

She dried herself off after having a long bath to think about the events of the day. She still couldn't believe Queen Celia had spoken to her personally already. She slipped her loungewear on and moved towards the bedroom, ready to have a well-deserved rest to mull over the events.

"I think I'll be alright for the night now, thank you for helping me girls. I'll be sure to call if I need anything. I'll see you two in the morning!" Aria said brightly.

They both smiled and waved as they left the vicinity of her room. Aria settled into bed, and fell asleep fast.

 

_Grenades exploded around her, and people ran towards the gates of the palace._

_"Aria!" A stranger ran towards her, carrying a gun in his hand. She reached for it and nodded. The gun was fully loaded, and felt natural to hold._

_"Save the rebellion." He shouted before running back towards the group of people attacking the palace, as you moved out of harm's way. As you were looking out to the attack, someone grabbed you from behind, holding a rope around your neck._

_"I won't let you let the rebellion win." He said before tightening the rope, causing Aria to drop the gun. She tried to release the rope, choking, but was helpless. As she faded out of consciousness, she could see who it was. Thomas._

 

Aria woke up to the sound of alarms, and the maids shaking her awake.

"Come on miss, we need to move to the shelter." Ruth said, handing a long overcoat to her.

"W-what's happening?" Aria murmured.

"There's been an attack threat, we need to get you to safety." Ruth and Michaela pushed you towards a small concealed doorway that was now open behind a panel in her room, and you stumbled down the stone stairs. As you were walking down, you heard a loud bang and screaming coming from a doorway on the way down.

"We need to check that the people are okay!" Aria cried, trying to reach for the door, but being held back by her maids.

"Our priority is to get you to the shelter safely, we need to go." Michaela said in a calm tone of voice.

Aria struggled against their arms but to no avail, as she was escorted the last part of the path to a large room with all of the candidates already inside. When she was told to sit down on one of the beds, she heard a guard talking outside of the doorway. Scarlett hadn't arrived yet. She immediately rushed towards the door, hearing the other candidates shouting at her to get back, seeing the guards' arms flailing to pull her back, but she slipped past swiftly and ran back towards where the screaming came from. Pushing open the door, she saw what had happened. Bodies were strewn across the floor, everyone covered in a sooty dust, some of them also covered in their own blood, lifeless. She scanned the floor for Scarlett.

"Scarlett?" She cried out.

A woman with short, curly brown hair splayed around her head laying near her croaked a quiet "Help me". Aria rushed over and quickly held the woman's apron to the wound on her wound. A piece of shrapnel stuck out of her shoulder.

"Hold this tightly on your shoulder, I'll go get help." Aria stated.

The woman croaked, "Scarlett, she's hidden in the drawing room. We couldn't get her out on time..." She spluttered and winced in pain, but continued, "...go find her. It's the room with the blue door."

Aria looked at the woman sympathetically and rushed towards the only room in the corridor with a blue door, looking down at the soot that accumulated on her overcoat. She quickly opened the door.

"Scarlett?"

A muffled "I'm here" sounded from the closet tucked into the far corner of the room. Aria opened the door, relieved to see Scarlett, fairly unharmed, but shaking. She wasn't wearing her nightclothes, she was in casual clothes.

"I have a few questions, Scarlett." Aria mentioned.

"I only wanted to explore the palace at night! If I had been in my room, this wouldn't have happened." Scarlett let out a sob and stood up to hug Aria tightly.

"I'm glad you're okay, I heard screaming and I didn't want it to be you to get hurt."

"My maids came to find me to hide me away, they left as soon as they hid me, did you see them?"

"I spoke to someone who told me to find you here..." Aria started to explain.

"Oh no. Erica. We need to go fast." 

Scarlett dragged Aria out of the room, to find the bodies laying across the corridor. She ran over to Erica, sobbing again.

"Erica, I'm okay, we're getting help now. Aria run fast find a guard!" Scarlett shouted.

Aria quickly descended the stairs to drag the nearest guard to everyone's help. When she went back to help with the injured, she saw someone in a dark cloak waiting at the end of the corridor. She caught a flash of metal emerging from under their cloak and before thinking, ran towards the person. They drew a gun, and shot three times, towards the people. 

One gunshot missed and bounced off the golden vase near the door.

The second gunshot flew past Aria's head, and planted itself into an already deceased body.

The third, aimed straight at Aria. It flew straight through her side, and she gasped in pain before collapsing.


End file.
